House battery camping solution?

Posted by BlaZEN213@reddit | overlanding | View on Reddit | 18 comments

Would it be possible to attach a battery bank to the car's battery terminals (while also disconnecting the existing battery) to have the car run in accessory for about 8-10 hours? I'm making a trunk camper build for my 4runner and want to have the vents running overnight so the windows won't fog up. I know I can just crack the windows a little, but this would be for when the weather makes that less than ideal.

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boanerges57@reddit

It would probably be more energy efficient to just put a couple of 12v computer fans in the windows.

That fan actually draws a lot of current. A few 12v 120mm or 140mm fans would do the trick. Make a window template out of insulation board and mock it up. In accessory your car keeps a lot of stuff powered up. A pair of 120mm pc fans aren't likely to draw 0.5 amps.

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Funny_Sandwich_1009@reddit

I just got the ecoflow delta 2 with the 500 watt alternator charger. The delta 2 can be charged while driving. You can also use a solor panal to charge it. I plug in a diesel heater, a fridge and multiple other devices like my phone, drone batteries and cameras. Usually last me two to 3 days before charging again. Take a little over two hours to charge fully while driving.

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Used-Joe@reddit

A car’s ac compressor usually runs on the fan belt, which only spins when the engine is running. I’d suggest rather getting a power station that car run ac power and a small portable air conditioner

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Bradfordsonny@reddit

Depending how crazy you want to go you can get an mppt charge controller from renogy and connect your vehicle battery to your house battery. The mppt charge controller will charge your house battery when your truck is running and when its off your fans or whatever can draw down the house battery but your car battery will stay protected. It takes a bit to wire all of this though so you need to be handy.

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StarRaveDave@reddit

r/furrunner

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foodfighter@reddit

A lot of correct comments already about getting small portable fans to run off a different battery.

One thought - if you already have cordless power tools at home, there are plenty of options that run off tool batteries like this one. Then you don't even need to buy and wire in a dedicated house battery; just bring along one or two tool batteries from home when you go for a camp.

Also, as someone who lives near the PNW and is all too familiar with camping in the rainy weather and wanting to crack open windows, consider some Window Deflectors / "Monsoon Guards". They make them for almost every make of vehicle and work a treat if you just want to crack a window an inch or so.

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BlaZEN213@reddit (OP)

I didn't know just fans would be enough to keep condensation down. I actually have a couple craftsman cordless fans already with me. Wind deflectors are definitely on my shopping list as well

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foodfighter@reddit

Yeah, it's amazing what a little ventilation can do.

And if you find that the big fans are too much and/or draw down your tool battery too fast (overnight) you can use a little USB-powered one instead since they make USB-battery-bank converter heads too.

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monstertruck567@reddit

https://www.genesisoffroad.com/products/gen3-tundra-dual-battery-kit?srsltid=AfmBOopUU2e2fzRD5BladrI4XAZoqJQUX20c7CbZGqL9GgST77c9H4Qz

Kits like this would allow you to keep the starter attached to the primary battery, and connect the vehicle’s fuse box and other accessories to the 2nd. This one is for a Tundra, don’t know about other vehicles.

In general, if at all possible, it is much, much easier to run a portable battery pack like a Goal Zero or Jackery than to do a house battery for accessories.

I charge my Jackery off a DC-DC converter while I’m driving.

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smashnmashbruh@reddit

No. Don’t do that buy a power bank “solar generator” and run fans.

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baconpizzaman@reddit

Much easier to run accessories off a separate house battery than to try to make factory accessories of the car run off a separate starter battery. You could always run small computer fans off a secondary battery system, or carry a jump-pack for your main starter battery in case of emergencies.

Get some nice in-channel wind/rain deflectors for your 4Runner; it'll allow you to have the windows cracked in the rain and wind without getting wet. You can also get cheap mosquito nets that go over the door to prevent bugs from coming in and add a bit of privacy as a bonus

You could probably get away with a cheap solar battery bank (Think GoalZero, Bluetti, Anker, Etc) that charges just off the 12v accessory outlet of the car, a small solar panel, etc., and then can run some lights, fans, heated blanket, phone chargers, etc., in a safe way that won't leave you stranded

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Glad-Welder1733@reddit

I mean it basically sounds like what you want is a dual battery system. That’s the simplest and cleanest solution for your needs. I’d just run a cheap DC-DC system for recharging your secondary battery, then you could hook your vehicle up to the secondary battery at night to run it in accessory mode. Hook your main vehicle battery up in the morning, start driving to recharge your secondary battery.

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BajamboLou@reddit

Are you interested in running the AC off this system? It is likely your AC compressor runs off your engine running, so that would not be possible.

Are you just looking for a fan? As others have said there are plenty of 12v or 5v fans that will make that easy.

Cracking the windows gets alot easier when you havewindow deflectors

If you are committed to your battery idea, you will want a master switch to isolate your new battery and the vehicles existing battery. Marine systems run a dual battery switch and they work well, but you will need to charge the auxiliary battery separate from the main if you see enough of a use differential.

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ADMINlSTRAT0R@reddit

I also think for your stated needs, you'd be easier to get a USB-powered fan running on powerbank. But to answer your question, yes you can isolate your main batt using cut-off switch (manual) or smart batt isolator (automatic, look up RedArc smart isolator)

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